How to succeed in college apps - with Gitanjali Rao
Gitanjali Rao – 18-year-old MIT student, Forbes “30 under 30 in Science” and TIME “top young innovator” – joined us last week to share her insights with Project Access mentees in our US Program!
In a very informative session on the 28th of August, Gitanjali Rao guided 25+ Project Access mentees and aspiring students on the best practices to effectively highlight their unique qualities in their college portfolios.
Rao is a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, an author and a STEM promoter. She won the Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge in 2017 and was recognised on Forbes 30 Under 30 for her innovations. Rao is currently on a merit-based scholarship at MIT and was also accepted into ALL the universities she applied to! Here’s a quick recap of her guide to university applications -
Define your passion and purpose: Ask yourself “Who am I as a person and why do I want to do what I want to do?” Showcase this passion for a subject in your essays.
Add your skills: This includes all the theoretical, technical and soft skills that you possess for this subject. Plus, include the soft and hard skills you plan on acquiring during your studies.
Show your academics and extracurriculars: Include all courses, research, internships, societies and clubs, or other extracurricular activities that are connected to your passion. Your college application examiners want to see how are you striving to be the best as what you chose!
Achievements: Show them why you are the best at what you want to do - this can include all your awards, recognitions or such achievements.
Leadership: “Leadership means making an impact, doing something new and niche within your passion.”
Your passion, commitment, excellence and leadership are the driving forces of your application. Ensure they are exhibited in any essay of yours.
“Explain the courses you took, why you took them, and if you took any classes outside of your high school offered courses”
“Show extracurriculars where you have shown passion, commitment and leadership for a longer time duration – yes, time matters!”
Top tips for aspiring students:
Start early! Start with bullet points about everything you want to highlight from your life. Once you have an overview of things you want to focus on, it’s much easier. Remember that each essay in a single application should say something new about you. You’ve got little space to show them a lot about yourself - use it! Plus, Make sure each essay answers the question or topic appropriately in the first few sentences itself.
“You have very little space to create an impression of yourself.”
Review your essay to see if you have spoken about someone or something else other than you in the essay. We make the mistake of writing too much about something not connected to us. It’s also recommended to get them reviewed by someone who is not close to you - they will give you an unbiased opinion.
Tell your professors or mentors (or whoever is writing your recommendation) everything about you that you want them to include in the recommendations. Build a resume for yourself, or a sheet with all your skills, academics, extracurriculars and achievements. Tell them more about you and they will be able to say more about you. Provide some insights into what you loved in their class and how it’s helped you improve in your field.
Take as many tests (SATs) as you need to get up there - it is a significant factor in your application.
Anything you think is a ‘maybe’ - put it down.
“Anything optional is not optional. If it’s a maybe, it’s not a maybe, it’s a YES!”
If you’re confused about how to shorten your list of universities, start looking at the little things - the campus, the weather, or the clubs they offer.
But most importantly, remember, you can only do as much as you can and just let your personality shine through!
She engaged in an insightful Q&A at the end of the session, solving applicants’ doubts and guiding them towards a more personalised and structured application.
Benjamin Widmaier, an attendee said:
"Gitanjali was really straightforward in her presentation about her journey to MIT and she helped me realize that college admissions is just about being at your very best self and to communicate it well with the admissions officers."
Aadya Sharma, another attendee said:
“Gitanjali helped me realise the importance of showing the best of my experiences in my college application.”
Rao emphasised the importance of embracing individuality and showcasing what sets YOU apart from others, encouraging students to craft their applications in a way that reflects their true passions and strengths.